North Carolina Lawmaker Forces Radio Show Off The Air After Hosts Criticized His Policies

The Central Carolina Community College has stopped airing “The Rant,” a weekly radio political program, after North Carolina State Rep. Mike C. Stone (R) objected to its commentary.

Stone’s state legislative office complained to the college’s president after one of the program’s hosts criticized Stone’s proposals to subvert local control and add more partisanship to the political process.

NC Policy Watch reported Friday that, following the critical editorial against Stone’s proposals, Stone’s legislative assistant sent CCCC President T.E. “Bud” Marchant an email asking if the program is affiliated with the college. A day later, Stone’s aide followed up with more questions from the second-term legislator, demanding to know:

What is their programming schedule and format? Each day, each time slot. What show filled the FCC requirement when they stopped doing The Rant. Or did they stop? Has the show been in production since 2008? What is the radio station’s budget? What is the source of its funding?

The station is part of the instructional budget of the college, funded in part by tax dollars.

Two days after the initial email, Marchant indefinitely suspended the show. Marchant claimed in an email the suspension had nothing to do with its content.

The show’s hosts say they will move from the FM station to an independent podcast, noting: “We’ve decided to part ways with CCCC so that anything we might talk about in the future will not put the school in an awkward position with anyone at any level of government.”